Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee

The Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) was a large student political organization that existed in the United States from 1960 to 1976, supporting the Civil Rights movement, participative democracy, and the anti-war movement during the Vietnam War. The SNCC was formed as an alliance of African-American and white (predominantly Jewish or liberal) students at Shaw University, and it was known for its field work, consisting of the organization of voter registration drives, sit-ins, freedom rides, and fundraising. Its full-time workers were paid $10 per week, and the group supported integration during the 1960s. However, Stokely Carmichael and James Forman transformed the SNCC into a black power and anti-war organization, and it was renamed to the "Student National Coordinating Committee" in 1969 to reflect the broadening of its strategies. The SNCC phased out of existence in the 1970s as violent groups such as the Black Panthers grew in power.